Tired of ads? Subscribers enjoy a distraction-free reading experience.
Click here to subscribe today or Login.

Jerrod Ferrence, left, an exercise specialist at Hazleton Health and Wellness Center, demonstrates with workshop attendees one of the stretching exercises the center recommends employees perform several times each day.

Sue Gannis/For Times Leader

Promoting a healthy lifestyle based on prevention is a growing trend in health care and the workplace, and in that regard, Hazleton Health and Wellness Center conducts health workshops geared for human resources and health and safety departments four times each year. The 90-minute programs are conveniently scheduled in the morning.

“It’s more of an educational resource we provide for employers,” said Joe Aquilina, client services coordinator for the Wellness Center’s Occupational Health Services.

The latest workshop focused on the importance of proper stretching techniques for employee safety. Featured speakers were Chris Danishefsky, industrial rehabilitation coordinator at Hazleton Health and Wellness Center; Jerrod Ferrence, an exercise specialist at the facility; and Dr. Anthony Falvello, an orthopedic physician at Hazleton Health and Wellness Center.

The health professionals encouraged companies to implement programs that include basic stretching exercises that employees could practice several times daily.

“Four to five minutes a few times each day is recommended for the benefits of increased flexibility and increased blood flow,” said Ferrence during the executive workshop.

Stretch breaks are also employee energizers, according to Danishefsky, because stretching decreases fatigue and micro trauma (soft tissue injuries due to repetitive motion) and promotes tissue recovery.

The goal of designing an employee stretching program is to reduce the incidence of work-related injuries such as muscle and back strains, rotator cuff problems and carpal tunnel syndrome, which could result in less time off by employees due to injuries and decreased health-related costs for the companies.

Body mechanics training and ergonomic science were mentioned at the workshop, and the benefits of proper techniques were explained to the participants. Something as simple as a correct sitting posture at a desk or work station, or when driving a truck, can make a significant difference in muscle and joint health. Maintaining a 90-degree angle at various joints — hips, knees, elbows, and wrists — was also recommended as was support for the lumbar in the lower back.

Stretching programs can benefit everyone, but the programs and recommendations discussed at the workshop targeted the “industrial athlete.” Factory workers, warehouse workers, police, firefighters, nurses, emergency workers, and postal employees are considered industrial athletes. Any type of job that requires repetitive tasks such as bending and lifting or sitting at a computer for most or all day require some level of fitness.

Ferrence cited a San Jose case study in which companies that established a corporate stretching program decreased injuries and costs by 41 percent and accounted for a 67 percent reduction in employee time off because of injury. Closer to home, Nancy Trovitch, human resource manager for Silgan Whitecap, a manufacturing facility in the Valmont Industrial Park in Hazleton, said only two injury claims have been recorded since a new stretching program was introduced in January. This fact compares to 44 recordable injuries five years ago. Trovitch admitted that implementing a mandatory stretching program was not without resistance from some employees, but that was overcome by easing into a supervisor-led program. With everyone now on board, Silgan recently earned a safety award. Trovitch credits the new stretching program for the upgraded safety at the facility.

Realizing that employees who are not working are non-productive in the eyes of business owners and managers, the Hazleton Health and Wellness Center professionals emphasize the stretching programs are only a few minutes long, and may benefit companies in the long run by increasing employee production and safety.

The next program will be scheduled at the center in the fall. “It will be on a health issue that is relevant and topical,”Aquilina said.

For more information on stretching programs for businesses or the next workshop, contact Aquilina at 501-6802 or jaquili [email protected].